Mirror KB Articles about
horses & horse care

by Kim and Kari Baker

Mirror KB Equine Article Series

Conditioning for Maximum PerformanceArticle and Photos by Kim and Kari Baker

As a owner, the all important question you must ask
yourself is what event your horse is physically and mentally suited for. Is the
horse built to easily breeze his way to the winners circle on the race track or
possibly to cover mile upon mile of rugged terrain vying for the top honor of
best conditioned distance horse? However, maybe he is better suited to cutting
out and handily work a cow in one of the popular cattle events or making a long
sliding stop as a reining horse . To answer this question the you must also
determine if the top performance of your horse will demand only speed or if it
will require a combination of speed and skill to expertly execute the chosen
sport? And then, not only must the physical requirements be weighed, so must the
mental and emotional aspects of performing the given task be taken into
consideration.

Once youíve settled on which event to pursue with
your equine athlete youíre now faced with the job of creating an
individualized training program. This program, tagged by the professional
fitness trainer as progressive loading or precision training, is best
known simply as conditioning. In order to build such a program with any real
success, you must first have a little understanding of equine physiology.

Training programs are formed around three basic
stages, the initial stage, the developmental stage, and the maintenance stage.
How long it will take to get the horse in peak condition will, without a doubt,
depend on the individualís age, his genetic makeup, and the particular event
the horse will be conditioned for.

Stages of Conditioning

Considered the most important of the three stages of
training, every horse, no matter what sport he will eventually be performing in,
should begin his training with long slow distance (LSD), for it provides the
basic groundwork for all equine events. LSD is the gradual introduction of the
horse to increasingly greater distances of physical exertion and over a broad
variety of terrain. Here your objective will be to carefully work your horse up
to an hour of exercise at a walk and trot at an average speed of 4 to 5 mph and
a canter at a moderate speed of 10 to 12 mph. During this phase of conditioning,
the horseís cardiovascular system is strengthened, boosting the capacity of
the lungs and heart to carry and utilize oxygen. It will also increase the
durability and elasticity of the muscoskeletal system. The principal advantage
to all this, is that it will groom the athlete for the next stage of training,
there by decreasing the chance of injury.

Moving on to the second level of conditioning, you
must begin to focus on drills which mimic the moves that are essential for the
particular sport your horse will be expected to execute during competition. This
step in the conditioning program is essential for providing an increase in
coordination, balance, and skill. At first these drills will be performed at
half the rate of speed than that which is expended in the actual event, avoiding
the physical and mental demands associated with competition. However, once the
horse has gained sufficient skill and coordination youíll begin to put your
horse through strenuous workouts, which will target the further development of
precise muscle groups.

Putting it into Practice

The traditional training program used by most
trainers generally centers on a five day week. Horses are ridden at an aerobic
level of work on days 1 and 5 while on days 2, 3 and 4 an additional 20 minutes
of a more intense exercise is added to the regular workout in order to elicit an
anaerobic level of physical exertion.

Interval training, a newer approach to conditioning,
consists of a 6 day week and was structured to apply the precept of
"overload," which is to exercise the horse to the point bordering on
fatigue. Just as in traditional training, interval training puts the horse
through an aerobic exercise on days 1 and 4 followed by an intense workout,
"overload" on days 2 and 5 while on days 3 and 6
the horses are only ridden at a jog for 20 minutes.

During the intense workouts on days 2 and 5 the
horse is closely monitored while he repeatedly performs anaerobic exercises. The
workout is ended just as the heart rate elevates
over
previously recorded repetitions at which point the horse is considered to be on
the verge of fatigue.

How the horse responds both physically and mentally
to training, no matter which method the trainer chooses to follow, will
determine whether his workload should be increased, decreased, or held steady.
So how will you know when he can move on to the next phase in training? In order
to do this, you must pay close attention to your horseís heart rate or pulse.
You should know your horseís normal resting pulse and be aware of the length
of time it takes for your horse to recover a normal pulse rate following
exercise. As a rule the equine athlete is ready to move on when he has a solid
heart rate recovery within 5 to 15 minutes following an hour of steady exertion
or when he can maintain a heart rate of under 150 beats per minute during a long
gallop. Another favorable signal will be the change in the consistency of sweat
from the previously thick sticky quality to a thin watery one.

As the trainer, you must be able to recognize stress
and fatigue. If following a daily workout the horseís pulse recovery rate is
longer than 15 minutes the horse has been faced with too
great a challenge and should be brought back down to a lower level of exercise.
If, at any time, there is a sudden increase in the pulse rate it may suggest
that the horse is in pain and that he should first be checked for injuries
before further training continues. Other signals of over
stress that you can watch for include changes in gaits, dullness in attitude,
irritability, weight loss, a decrease in appetite and lower leg edema.

Once the horse has acquired the desired amount of
conditioning, how can you keep him at his peak throughout the entire show
season? While a few horses may train for a single competition where one all out
effort is required, most horses face several competitive performances during the
show season. Unfortunately itís impossible to keep the equine athlete at his
utmost peak condition for the entire length of the season, but by using a system
of "mini peaks" you should be able to maintain your mount close to his
peak condition throughout the season. This takes careful planning in order to
time the athleteís peak performance to coincide with that of planned
competitions.

Most successful trainers find that bringing their
horses to or just under 98% of their peak then tapering the duration of exercise
by half will maintain the horse in competitive condition. Just prior to the
event the equine athlete may be rested in order to allow the horseís system to
cleans itself of toxins and sufficiently replenish fuel shortages in preparation
for the up coming competition. Following competition the horse should be allowed
time to recuperate then again be brought back into a routine of exercise,
bringing him back to near peak condition and a holding
pattern, in preparation of the next competitive event.
Barring any unexpected problems, it should be noted that for any amount of time
given for rest it will require an equal amount of time in reconditioning the
horse for competition.

Mental preparation of the equine athlete is just as
important as his physical development and should be tailored to every
conditioning program. The mood or attitude of the horse can be an effective
gauge as to how the horse is adjusting to all levels of his training. Stress,
while under saddle, can be observed by excessive swishing or ringing of the
tail, pinned back ears, and tossing or shaking of the head. In addition, a horse
that is ordinarily very sociable may become hard to catch and halter.

A sour or sullen horse might also signal that he is
experiencing discomfort of some kind, a cue that his body hasnít adapted well
to the demands being made on it. This may also be a sign that your horse has
developed gastric ulcers. Along with poor feeding practices, the stress of
training has been proven to be a major factor in the development of equine
gastric ulcers in the performance horse.

It is vital that the equine athlete be evaluated as
an individual and at many levels. Not only must the trainer be able to produce a
physically fit athlete, he must also produce one that is
psychologically tolerant. If you are to expect to compete throughout the show
season with an eager mount, one that is ready and willing to meet the enormous
challenges of competition, you must incorporate a well thought out conditioning
program, which will fully prepare your horse for his maximum performance.

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